Syracuse Recruiting: Brantley Flips, Final Battles In Effect

The Missouri Tigers had been rumored to take one of Syracuse's prized recruits for some time now. Turns out, they're grabbing one, just not the one we thought.

Josh Manley's commitment to the Syracuse Orange was said to be soft at best when he decided to visit Missouri. That visit was cancelled and Manley has since re-upped with the Orange.

However, SU recruit Harold Brantley ended up taking that trip instead and has decided to flip to the Tigers, according to reports.

Brantley told recruiting web sites Scout.com and Rivals.com late Sunday that he had decided to flip to Missouri. The two-sport star had committed to the Orange on June 29 during a summer flurry that saw SU land 10 players in 15 days.

Here's the original story on the Hershey DE. I still won't apologize for that title. The loss of Brantley drops the Orange's incoming recruiting class from No. 55 to 57, according to Scout.com's John Garcia Jr.

That's two players who have flipped on the Orange recently, not that it's any reason to freak out. This is recruiting and all verbal commitments are non-binding. The question is, can the Orange replace their losses and keep everyone else intact?

Orange Fizz has a good rundown of the five biggest recruiting battles the Orange are still in, including DB Wayne Morgan (vs. UConn), LB Josh Glanton (vs. FIU) and DE Julian Pinnix-Odrick (vs. Rutgers).

Meanwhile, Syracuse.com has an article up on the value of a verbal commitment and how sometimes it's the thing that signals to other schools that they should start recruiting. Highlighted are SU recruits Josh Manley and offensive lineman Jason Emerich.

National Signing Day is Wednesday. Get all your hats lined up, it's gonna be a busy day.